Ethical monotheism

Ethical monotheism is a form of exclusive monotheism in which God is the source for one standard of morality, who guides humanity through ethical principles.[1][2]

Definition

Ethical monotheism originated within non-missionizing Judaism to the exclusion of other gods or higher powers in the biblical period.[3] It is evident in many different religions, such as Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Islam, Bahá'í Faith, Sikhism, and many more; all of these religions carry the belief of having one sole higher power, who controls everything that occurs in the world.[4]

History

Originally, ethical monotheism implied the adherence to the non-physical, non-corporeal, eternal, and in no way anthropomorphic "God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob" (Elohei Avraham, Elohei Yitzchak ve Elohei Ya`aqov). This original form of ethical monotheism is based on practice, tradition and—to some—the logical result of questions concerning the origin of the world, rather than arrived at as the conclusion of a philosophical argument. The worship of other gods that were not present at the revelation on Mount Sinai, in particular the God in Christianity, is referred to as avodah zarah in Judaism, and it is traditionally believed that there are neither other pagan gods nor other (incarnated) divine personages.

The God of ethical monotheism is worshiped in Islam and in Bahá'í Faith, but can also be the Zoroastrian higher divine uncreated spirit named Ahura Mazda, and in Sikhism the Supreme Being or the creator of all named Waheguru. In Christianity the original God of ethical monotheism is worshiped as part of the Trinity, or as part of non-trinitarian conceptions of God.[5] Other gods are variously considered to be false or demonic, and it is believed that any other gods cannot be compared to the one true God.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Ethical monotheism". britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  2. ↑ Prager, Dennis. "Ethical Monotheism". jewishvirtuallibrary.org. American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "CORE ETHICAL TEACHINGS OF JUDAISM". ijs.org.au. Ian Lacey and Josie Lacey. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  4. ↑ Nikiprowetzky, V. (1975). Ethical monotheism. (2 ed., Vol. 104, pp. 69-89). New York: The MIT Press Article Stable. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/20024331?uid=3739448&uid=2&uid=3737720&uid=4&sid=21101848526193
  5. ↑ Weber Bederman, Diane (19 May 2014). "The True Meaning of Ethical Monotheism" (Chaplain:Religion is an affair of the mind and heart.). TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
  6. ↑ Lang, A. (2013). Exclusive monotheism. In A. Lang (Ed.), United Kingdom: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/390101/monotheism/38209/Exclusive-monotheism

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